White Dress Shirts and Water
by Alia G. L
Summary: White dress shirts, water, and blue Superman costumes do not go together. So what happens to Clark one rainy day at a dedication ceremony? Will his secret be revealed to Lois? Or will he come up with a plan to save his identity? Read and find out!


Disclaimer: I don't own Superman, though I wish I did.

A/N: I was thinking the other day… if Clark Kent wears the Superman outfit under his white dress shirts, what happens when those shirts get wet? I mean, white is see-through when wet. How does he keep his secret then? This is the little story that came out of those thoughts. I hope you enjoy. Please read and review.

White Dress Shirts and Water

Clark Kent glanced up at the clouded sky. Thunder boomed in the distance and he picked up the last flicker of a lightning bolt. He sighed. That last thing he wanted on a day like this was to cover the opening ceremony of the park's newest attraction: a statue dedicated to Superman. He'd been invited as Superman, of course, but had declined. He couldn't be Superman and right an article for Perry at the same time. At least there was one good side to all of this; the lovely Lois Lane was in the passenger seat next to him.

"Can you believe this? Perry sending us out in weather like this. And to cover what? The dedication of yet another Superman statue." Clark glanced at her questioningly. "Don't get me wrong. I love the guy, but all these statues and dedications. I'm sure he's probably annoyed with it all."

"And how did you come to know Superman's psyche so well?" Clark asked, innocently, as he pulled into the parking spot. It was a little tight, but he managed. Before Lois could respond to his question, a loud clap of thunder was heard. The sound ushered in the rain which began to fall in torrents.

"Great." Lois muttered, reaching behind the seat, trying to find an umbrella. "What normal people would hold a ceremony in this weather?" She asked. Clark didn't respond knowing she was just letting off steam. Instead, he reached over and brushing her searching arms aside, grabbed the umbrella from under the passenger seat.

"Hold on one second and I'll come get you." He told her. She flashed him a smile.

"Thanks, Smallville." He grinned back and got out of the car. Rain hit the umbrella full force and he took a firmer grip on it. Not too firm, though. The last thing he needed was Lois asking why the umbrella was bent in half. He walked over to her side of the car and she got out. Together, they made their way to the dedication, where a large crowd was already gathered despite the falling rain.

Clark left his over-jacket inside the car. Not only was it raining, but it was also hot and humid. No sense in wearing a jacket, though the weather wouldn't have bothered him too much. They wormed their way to the front and then Lois pulled him over to the side. There was just a little more room over there.

"Good day, ladies and gentleman. Welcome to the dedication of a statue to honor our city's greatest hero." A cheer went up. Clark breathed a sigh of relief. They had made it there just in time. Lois was scribbling fast in her notebook as the man continued talking. Clark took notes in his head, deciding that holding the umbrella and writing at the same time would be impossible. Instead, he watched the people in the crowd. There were all sorts: reporters, parents with kids, old citizens, teenagers, business man and woman, and dozens of other types of people. And Superman was the one who united them all. Clark felt honored. A small curse to his right made him look at Lois.

"What?" He whispered. Lois pointed to a spot on the ground about ten feet away. He could make out what looked like a pen lying on the concrete.

"I dropped my pen and it rolled over there. I forgot to bring a spare with me; I was in such a rush to get out here. Be a dear and get it for me, will you, Smallville?" She asked. Clark resisted the urge to sigh and handed the umbrella over to her. He walked into the pouring rain and retrieved the pen. When he got back under the umbrella, he was soaked.

"Thanks." Lois said, taking the proffered pen and starting to write again. She cast a glance at Clark and she smirked. "Hey, Smallville, didn't your mom ever teach you not to where colored undershirts?" Clark glanced down at his shirt and started. He was in trouble.

The wet shirt had decided to stick to him, in the process becoming see-through. He could just barely make out the outlines of the "S" shield of his costume, though the blue coloring was quite obvious. Lois laughed at his expression and turned to continue writing down what the speaker was saying. Clark knew he had to think fast. It was only by pure luck that Lois hadn't seen the "S" shield. She just thought it was a blue shirt. Good. Let her think that. He had to find a way to dry to the shirt or change out of it without her seeing. This was going to be tough.

His jacket was in the car. He very well couldn't run to go get it; Lois would wonder why. After all, it was about 90 degrees outside and the humidity would make it hotter. No sane person would wear a jacket in this weather. That left two options: telling her or distraction. Clark decided to go with distraction.

Handing the umbrella back to Lois for a second, he bent down, pretending to grab a dropped item. Adjusting his glasses, he aimed his laser beams at the hand of the statue. Only a finger, he thought to himself. All he wanted to do was hit the little finger and have it fall. That would be enough of a distraction to let him go strip of his costume. Mentally, he cursed himself for not thinking the whole white shirt thing through. Of course it would be see-through when it was wet. Dumb Clark.

The little finger of the statue fell to the ground with a thud. Everyone gasped and looked up and down, trying to find the source that had caused the finger to fall. A few people panicked and ran from the dedication. Clark was one of them. Lois had stepped out from under the umbrella to get a closer look at the finger. Clark used that opportunity to fold up the umbrella and run into the little woods boarding the park.

In less seconds than it took one to blink, Clark had completely took off his clothes, taken the Superman costume off, and replaced his normal clothes. He only hoped Lois would not notice the missing blue undershirt. Going as fast as he dared go, he made it back to the car and placed the folded costume in the trunk under some folders. Lois had no reason to be in the trunk, so she wouldn't see it. Racing back to the dedication, he made it just in time to see Lois turn toward him.

"What do you make of this, Clark?" She asked, stepping back into the protection of the umbrella. Not that it made much difference; she, like him, was completely soaked. "Think the gods are giving their disapproval of yet another Superman statue?"

"I really don't know what to think. It was probably just some random fluke. A problem with that statue itself which could have been brought on by the rain." Lois rolled her eyes.

"Always so serious, Smallville. You need to lighten up." Clark did his best to smile and Lois laughed. "At least you got rid of that blue undershirt. Now you look more normal."

"What…" Clark stammered, shock written all over his face. Why did she have to notice? Would she ask how he took it off so fast? Fear invaded his heart, but all Lois did was laugh at his face.

"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone." She said with another laugh. And that was the end of it, except Clark vowed never to wear white dress shirts on days when it was raining.


End file.
